Lamp socket



May 6, 1941.

G. B. BENANDER LAMP SOGKE'I Fued July 4, 1939 Inventor-z d n n r a o b e t B.J.A B 1 g 6 H m;

Patented May 6, 1941 LAMP SOCKET George B. Benander, Oaklawn, R. I., assignor' to Monowatt Electric Corporation, Providence, R. L, a corporation of Connecticut Application July 4, 1939, Serial No. 282,760

' (o1. 17s 35s) 2 Claims.

This invention relates to sockets for lamps or the like, and more particularly to a method of connecting electrical conductors to the socket.

An object of the invention is the provision of an improved construction and arrangement in sockets of the type described in which connection may be made to electrical conductors quickly and easily during assembly of the socket elements.

In the accompanying drawing Fig. 1 is an elevational view of a lamp socket constructed in accordance with the invention; Fig. 2 is a sectional view through the socket taken along the lines 2-2 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is an exploded View of the elements of the socket; and Fig. 4 is a sectional view along the lines 4-4 of Fig. 2 showing the arrangement of the elements within the socket housing.

Referring to the drawing and more particularly to Fig. 3, the socket includes a, cylindrical contact shell III which may be spun from sheet metal and provided with threads II extending along the wall of the cylinder and with an inturned flange I2 at one end thereof. In order to provide space for a center contact I3 the flange I2 is provided with an opening I4. A tongue I5, lanced from the flange I2 extends upwardly away from the plane of the flange, as shown by Fig, 3, during the initial manufacturingoperation. Seated within the shell I and bearing against the inner face of the flange I2 is a plate I6 of insulating material, for example, sheet fiber, and a corresponding plate I! rests against the outer face of the flange, as shown most clearly by Fig. 2. Each of the plates I6 and I1 is provided with a plurality of openings I8 for receiving the arms I9 of a U-shaped clip 20 which forms center contact I3. The cent-er contact I3 and the outer contact shell I0 cooperate with and are connected to the electrical conductors 2| and 22, respectively, in a manner now to be described.

The insulation on each of the conductors 2| and 22 is stripped to provide bared portions 23 and 24. Prior to assembly of the outer insulating plate I! the bared portion 24 of the conductor 22 is inserted beneath the tongue I and the latter is then pressed or folded over the bared portion to grip it and maintain it in electrical contact with the outer contact shell III. This arrangement is shown most clearly by Figs. 2 and 3 and at the completion of the operation the tongue I5 is again located in the plane of the flange I2. The outer disk I1 is then placed in position on the outer surface of the flange I2 and the U-shaped clip 20 is inserted in the openings I 8 in the insulating plates I6 and I1, so that the arms I9 project through the plates and hold them in assembled position on the flange of the contact shell. The bared portion 23 of the conductor 2I is then inserted between the arms of the clip and these arms are bent or pressed around-the conductor, as shown by Fig. 4, so that the center contact I3 is electrically connected to the conductor 2 I.

By this construction it is possible to quickly and easily connect the electrical conductors to the elements of the lamp socket simply by stripping portions of the conductors and placing them in position to be gripped by the tongue I5 and the center contact clip 20. No cumbersome or time-consuming soldering operations are necessary. It should be noted that the insulating plates I6 and H are somewhat smaller in size than the shell III so that there is room for the bared portion of the conductor 24 to be clamped by the tongue I5 between the edges of the plates and the outer wall of the shell, this arrangement being shown at 25 in Fig. 4. This means that the tongue I5 may be bent down into the plane of the flange I2, as previously described, to provide a flat bearing surface for the outer plate H which rests on the tongue I5 as Well as the flange I2. In this manner the plates I6 and I are clamped securely on each side of the flange I2 and closely engage the surfaces of this flange and serve as a reinforcing medium for the contact shell, thereby making it possible to form the latter of relatively thin sheet material. Not only does the clip 20 serve as the center contact for the socket by being electrically connected to the conductor 2I,'but this clip serves the additional purpose of clamping the insulating plates I6 and I1 firmly in position on each side of the shell flange so that the tongue I5 cannot become loosened or dislodged to break electrical contact with the conductor. The arrangement of the bared portions of the conductors upon the assembly contact shell is such that they are insulated adequately from each other by means of the insulating plates I6 and I1.

After assembly of the contact elements and conductors the unit may be placed in any suitable housing of insulating material, for example, a molded rubber housing 26. In the form of the invention illustrated, this housing is molded around the assembled conductors and socket and provides a water-tight socket construction. The rubber material flows around the bared ends of the conductors and the exposed portions of the socket to protect these elements and, since it is molded to the insulation on the conductors, it absorbs any pulls on the conductors thereby protecting their connection to the lamp socket. If desired, the housing may be formed with a groove 21 which provides spaced resilient fingers 28 for gripping any suitable support to mount the lamp socket in position.

Several of the socket assemblies may be attached to a length of the parallel conductors and then the outer rubber housings may be molded on. Such a construction is particularly adapted for the manufacture of Christmas tree light sets and the socket illustrated has been shown as carrying a tree light 29. l 7

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

. 1, In a lamp socket, a contact shell having an inturned flange at one end, there being a tongue lan-ced from said flange, an insulated conductor having a bared portion, said tongue being bent over said bared portion into the plane of said flange for electrically connecting said conductor to said shell, a plate of insulating material seated within'said shell and resting on said flange, a second plateof insulating material engaging the outside face of said flange and holding said tongue in position for clamping said conductor,

7 said bared portion into the plane of said flange for electrically connecting said conductor to said shell, a plate of insulating material seated Within said shell and engaging said flange, a second plate of insulating material resting on the outside face of said flange and holding said tongue in clamping position around said conductor, a second insulated conductor having a bared portion resting on said second plate, means extending through both of said plates, and gripping the bared portion of said second conductor, said means holding said plates in clamping position against said flange and forming the center contact of the lamp socket, and a housing of insulating material surrounding said shell and as- GEORGE B. BENANDER. 

